Okla. Stat. tit. 43A, § 43A-14-103

A. When used in the Oklahoma Elder Exploitation and Abuse Act:

1. "Abuse" means causing or permitting:

a. the infliction of physical pain, injury, sexual abuse,

sexual exploitation, unreasonable restraint or

confinement, mental anguish or personal degradation,

or

b. the deprivation of nutrition, clothing, shelter,

health care, or other care or services without which

serious physical or mental injury is likely to occur

to a vulnerable adult by a caretaker or other person

providing services to a vulnerable adult;

2. "Caretaker" means a person who has:

a. the responsibility for the care of a vulnerable adult

or the financial management of the resources of a

vulnerable adult as a result of a family relationship,

b. assumed the responsibility for the care of a

vulnerable adult voluntarily, by contract, or as a

result of the ties of friendship, or

c. been appointed a guardian, limited guardian, or

conservator pursuant to the Oklahoma Guardianship and

Conservatorship Act;

3. "Exploitation" or "exploit" means an unjust or improper use

of the resources of a vulnerable adult for the profit or advantage,

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pecuniary or otherwise, of a person other than the vulnerable adult

through the use of undue influence, coercion, harassment, duress,

deception, false representation or false pretense;

4. "Financial neglect" means repeated instances by a caretaker,

or other person, who has assumed the role of financial management,

of failure to use the resources available to restore or maintain the

health and physical well-being of a vulnerable adult, including, but

not limited to:

a. squandering or negligently mismanaging the money,

property, or accounts of a vulnerable adult,

b. refusing to pay for necessities or utilities in a

timely manner, or

c. providing substandard care to a vulnerable adult

despite the availability of adequate financial

resources;

5. "Incapacitated person" means:

a. any person eighteen (18) years of age or older:

(1) who is impaired by reason of mental or physical

illness or disability, dementia or related

disease, developmental or intellectual disability

or other cause, and

(2) whose ability to receive and evaluate information

effectively or to make and to communicate

responsible decisions is impaired to such an

extent that such person lacks the capacity to

manage his or her financial resources or to meet

essential requirements for his or her mental or

physical health or safety without assistance from

others, or

b. a person for whom a guardian, limited guardian, or

conservator has been appointed pursuant to the

Oklahoma Guardianship and Conservatorship Act;

6. "Indecent exposure" means forcing or requiring a vulnerable

adult to:

a. look upon the body or private parts of another person

or upon sexual acts performed in the presence of the

vulnerable adult, or

b. touch or feel the body or private parts of another;

7. "Neglect" means:

a. the failure to provide protection for a vulnerable

adult who is unable to protect his or her own

interest,

b. the failure to provide a vulnerable adult with

adequate shelter, nutrition, health care, or clothing,

or

c. negligent acts or omissions that result in harm or the

unreasonable risk of harm to a vulnerable adult

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through the action, inaction, or lack of supervision

by a caretaker providing direct services;

8. "Personal degradation" means a willful act by a caretaker

intended to shame, degrade, humiliate, or otherwise harm the

personal dignity of a vulnerable adult, or where the caretaker knew

or reasonably should have known the act would cause shame,

degradation, humiliation, or harm to the personal dignity of a

reasonable person. Personal degradation includes the taking,

transmitting, or displaying of an electronic image of a vulnerable

adult by a caretaker, where the caretaker's actions constitute a
se harm the

personal dignity of a vulnerable adult, or where the caretaker knew

or reasonably should have known the act would cause shame,

degradation, humiliation, or harm to the personal dignity of a

reasonable person. Personal degradation includes the taking,

transmitting, or displaying of an electronic image of a vulnerable

adult by a caretaker, where the caretaker's actions constitute a

willful act intended to shame, degrade, humiliate or otherwise harm

the personal dignity of the dependent adult, or where the caretaker

knew or reasonably should have known the act would cause shame,

degradation, humiliation or harm to the personal dignity of a

reasonable person. Personal degradation does not include:

a. the taking, transmitting, or displaying of an

electronic image of a vulnerable adult for the purpose

of reporting vulnerable adult abuse to law

enforcement, the Department of Human Services or other

regulatory agency that oversees caretakers or enforces

abuse or neglect laws or rules,

b. the taking, transmitting, or displaying of an

electronic image of a vulnerable adult for the purpose

of treatment or diagnosis, or

c. the taking, transmitting, or displaying of an

electronic image of a vulnerable adult as part of an

ongoing investigation;

9. "Sexual abuse" means:

a. oral, anal, or vaginal penetration of a vulnerable

adult by or through the union with the sexual organ of

a caretaker or other person providing services to the

vulnerable adult, or the anal or vaginal penetration

of a vulnerable adult by a caretaker or other person

providing services to the vulnerable adult with any

other object, or

b. for the purpose of sexual gratification, the touching,

feeling or observation of the body or private parts of

a vulnerable adult by a caretaker or other person

providing services to the vulnerable adult, or

c. indecent exposure by a caretaker or other person

providing services to the vulnerable adult;

10. "Sexual exploitation" includes, but is not limited to, a

caretaker's causing, allowing, permitting, or encouraging a

vulnerable adult to engage in prostitution or in the lewd, obscene,

or pornographic photographing, filming, or depiction of the

vulnerable adult as those acts are defined by state law;

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11. "Verbal abuse" means the use of words, sounds, or other

communication, including, but not limited to, gestures, actions, or

behaviors, by a caretaker or other person providing services to a

vulnerable adult that are likely to cause a reasonable person to

experience humiliation, intimidation, fear, shame, or degradation;

and

12. "Vulnerable adult" means an individual who is an

incapacitated person or who, because of physical or mental

disability, including persons with Alzheimer's disease or other

dementias, incapacity, or other disability, is substantially

impaired in the ability to provide adequately for the care or

custody of himself or herself, or is unable to manage his or her

property and financial affairs effectively, or to meet essential

requirements for mental or physical health or safety, or to protect

himself or herself from abuse, neglect, or exploitation without

assistance from others.

B. Nothing in this section shall be construed to mean a

vulnerable adult is abused or neglected for the sole reason the

vulnerable adult, in good faith, selects and depends upon spiritual

means alone through prayer, in accordance with the practices of a

recognized religious method of healing, for the treatment or cure of

disease or remedial care, or a caretaker or other person

responsible, in good faith, is furnishing such vulnerable adult

spiritual means alone through prayer, in accordance with the tenets

and practices of a recognized church or religious denomination, for

the treatment or cure of disease or remedial care in accordance with

the practices of or express consent of the vulnerable adult.